The Mistakes: Good and Bad
by Hatterslover1
Summary: A series of mistakes in the life of Connor and Abby. Some for the better, some for the worse. connor/abby


It was one thing that should never have happened.

The funeral for Connor Temple was long, quiet and filled with the stony faces of all that had been his friends. No family had come to see him off. He didn't have any anymore. All of them had died from various causes when he was young. Dad in a car crash. Sister from drugs. His mother, was now alone, in an asylum somewhere off in the country. The grief of her loses had been too much for her and had bent her mind like a straw. She didn't even know she had a son.

No, Connor Temple didn't have any blood related family. However, the faces that surrounded the pit in which his coffin was being lowered, they came pretty close. Danny, like an older brother to Connor and the others at the Arc. Lester, the oppressive boss with a secret sense of humor. Jenny, the mom of the group, rallying them together and breaking up fights. Sarah, the older sister to Abby and Connor, acting as both a mentor and another friend. Then there was Abby. Abby was on a whole different field then the others. Connor had loved her. Told her three times.

The first was when she had been dangling off a cliff, angry Mer creatures snapping at her ankles. Second, the night they had made love in the cretaceous era. The third and final time, was as he died in her arms, Blood dripping down his body from the gunshot wound in his chest. That was another thing that should never have happened. Connor was innocent and Abby was to blame. 

When the final army of Helens "cleaners" had invaded the Arc, lead by the most advanced of the few, the team had scattered. Abby and Connor had tried to stick together when they ran from the men, trying to find any sort of weapon. They got separated though as the Cleaners found the weapons room. Abby had managed to get ahold of a small pistol and ran when they broke through the door. She had thought Connor was behind her and didn't bother to look back. Yet another thing that should never have happened.

It was only when Abby was cornered in the back storage room by one of the men with a large gun that she realized she was alone. She managed, thanks to a combination of quick fighting moves and a whole lot of luck, was able to disarm him. He had been on his back, her gun aimed at his chest when it happened. The final and biggest mistake that Abby had ever made occurred. She didn't shoot him.

Abby was harsh when it came to morals. Like animals, she didn't want to have to kill a human if they were defenseless or if it was absolutely necessary. She had backed off a bit, staring at the now seemingly harmless man on the floor. It was then that her feet were knocked suddenly out from under her as the cleaner leapt at her hesitation. She fell hard on the ground and her gun skirted a foot or so away from her. When she managed to roll over, the cleaner was on his feet again with his own gun back in his hands. He raised it slowly and aimed it at her head. Abby glanced over her shoulder. She could see the gun only inches from her hand.

"Abby!"

Bang!

Abby screamed as three consecutive shots were fired in a row. The cleaner dropped to the ground like a dead weight next to her, a smooth bullet hole in his forehead. One of the other shots hit the floor next to her head and ricochet off, disappearing in to the back of the room. The third and final bullet had struck the person standing behind Abby judging by the fact that there was blood dripping from just above her head. Tentatively, Abby raised her head and turned to stare behind her.

Connor was slumped against the wall behind her, his hand clamped over an area of his chest just off to the side of where his heart was. Blood was dripping between his fingers and oozing down the front of his shirt. His body quivered and he sank to the floor next to Abby.

"Connor!" Abby screamed, struggling to her knees and crouching next to him.

Connors eyes lifted slowly to meet hers. "Your beautiful." He whispered, blood leaking slowly from the corner of his mouth.

"Don't do this Connor! Don't you dare leave me!" She whispered urgently, stroking his hair back. He smiled lightly, his whole body shaking as his head dropped back against the wall behind him. "Stay with me, please!"

"Abs…I, I love you." He whispered feebly. He coughed shakily, more blood flowing out over his lips. His head sagged against the wall, his chin falling forward against his chest and his eyes closing. His body went limp beneath her.

"Connor… Connor… CONNOR! NO!" Abby screamed, shaking his body, but he was gone. She huddled against him, tucking herself under his chin and sobbing against his chest. This was her fault and she knew it. She should have shot when she had the chance.

Danny and Sarah found Abby two hours later. She was still clinging to Connors cold body and refused to release him when Sarah tried to pull her away. She glanced at Danny who was at Connors head, feeling his neck for a pulse. He shook his head slowly. Sarah nodded, fighting back the tears she felt growing in her eyes. "Abby, please." She whispered, finally managing to unwind Abby's arms from Connor.

Sarah pulled with all her might, managing to get Abby to her feet and out of the room. Becker slide past them, laying the blanket he was carrying over Connors body. Sarah and Abby made their way down the hall back to the main room of the Arc. There were people moving all over to clean up the damage left by the fights. Sarah steered Abby into the lab where Abby was keeping her new plants and sat her down in a chair.

Abby was only half aware of what was going on as Sarah checked her over. She handed her a glass of water and forced her to take a few sips when she set it back down. "Abby. Listen, I need you to talk to me. What happened? Are you okay?" She asked, placing a hand on her shoulder.

"My fault…" Abby whispered, staring off at the floor. "Its all my fault."

Sarah stared at her. Abby suddenly seemed to snap out of it, lunging past Sarah to the small sink set into the counter. Sarah recoiled as Abby heaved into the sink, emptying her stomach. Sarah placed a tentative hand on her back in comfort As Abby continued to gag. "Come on Abby, we need to get you looked at. You could go into shock." Sarah said urgently as Abby's knees buckled and she slid to the floor. She took a step towards her.

"No. Not me. I don't deserve it. Connor, it was my fault. I should be the one that's dead." The flat tone of Abby's voice scared Sarah. This wasn't the Abby she had talked to this morning.

"Abby---"

"NO!" Abby screamed suddenly. She lased out, pushing Sarah away from her. "No." She repeated again. "I cant! I killed Connor, I didn't shoot the Cleaner and so he shot Connor! Its my fault!" She wasn't crying which almost scared Sarah more. "It all my fault! Connor is dead and I basically killed him! He is dead Sarah!" She was screaming now, her fists clenched next to her. Sarah swallowed hard, trying to find the words to comfort her.

"Its not your fault. Connor would understand. Your not a killer Abby! Its only right to not want to kill someone! You acted within your own moral views and chose to not take another's life. Its not your fault." Sarah urged, trying as Abby's hard gaze locked on hers. "Connor loved you. He wouldn't want you to kill."

Abby bit her lip, staring down at her hands as she uncurled her fists lightly. They were covered in blood. Connors blood. Her whole body was, staining her shirt and smeared on the underside of her chin. "I loved him Sarah." She whispered, barely audible.

"I know you did. We all did. And he loved you back. So much." Sarah said quietly.

Abby's face cracked slowly, tears welling up in her eyes. "I loved him. I wanted to get married, have a family. I'm never going to have that now. I'm never going to have him back" She said. Her eyes were distant, almost like she was talking to herself more then Sarah. Her eyes suddenly snapped back up to Sarah. "Sarah,… he's gone." And with that, Abby broke down.

Another thing that should have never had to happen.

It was nine months later though, that what Abby Maitland, now registered as Abby Temple, found herself in the situation that, after Connor's death, she never thought would happen. It just so happened that on March 9th, which ironically would have been Stephen Hart's 30th birthday, Abby gave birth to the miracle child that no one could have guessed would exist.

Abby's pregnancy was discovered about a month after Connors funeral. At only eight weeks pregnant, she never would have known had Lester not placed a mandatory monthly pregnancy test for all female workers on the team. After Becker and Sarah had started becoming a little to close for comfort, and with the dangers members of the team faced on a day to day basis, there was no room to take risks.

Now, coming up on a year after Connors death, Abby gave birth to their child. Nicholas Connor Temple. Six pounds eleven ounces, born at 2:19 in the morning. The roots of his name were obvious. His first name, original thought by the rest of the team would be after his now deceased father. However, Abby refused, stating her decision on the fact that she didn't want to only name him Connor because his father was dead. Besides, Connor never liked names that were "Jr's". So instead, Abby named him after the man who had been both a mentor, and father figure to Connor and Abby, who had meant so much to them. His middle name instead took the honor of becoming "Connor".

'Nick' as they were all calling him now, was the spitting image of his father. Dark black-brown hair and deep chocolate colored eyes. He had a dimple on his cheek to go with it. His nose, chin and expressions and personality as he grew though, was all Abby.

Three years later, the team had watched as Nick grew quickly from the tiny baby into the toddler, into the small kid that he was today. According to Danny, he was a perfect blend of his parents, making the ultimate future Arc leader. He already was expressing a taste for dinosaurs after all.

Abby glanced over to where Nick was now standing. She had brought him with her to the Arc today after he had refused, yet again, to go to his day care. He was standing off a little ways, watching the new computer specialist Greg, working on the A.D.D. It struck her how at home he seemed there, a stuffed dinosaur clutched tightly in his arms and a black fedora, large as it had been Connor's, perched on top of his mop of dark hair. He seemed genuinely fascinated by the giant machine in front of him.

Just then from out of the corner, she saw Danny come rushed towards him. Danny scooped him up in his arms, tossing him into the air and catching him again. Nicks fit of giggles followed and he raised his arms, begging for Danny to do it again. Danny complied, tossing him back into the air and catching him again.

Abby watched from where she sat, tears drifting into her eyes as she watched the cute scene in front of her. 'Uncle Danny' seemed to be the biggest father figure that Nick had now. She wondered idley, her imagination wondering as she replaced Danny with Connor in her mind. She watched her little scene play across her mind as Connor tossed his son into the air, catching him and hugging him tightly, the mirror image of each other.

"Abby?" Danny's voice said suddenly. Abby jumped, blinking herself back into reality. "You should be getting home don't you think?"

Abby shot a look over at the clock. "Ya, sure. Nick needs to be getting to bed soon and I still need to make some dinner." Abby said tiredly. Danny nodded and gave Nick on last hug before passing him to Abby.

"Mommy!" Nick cried suddenly, throwing his tiny arms around her neck and hugging her tightly.

"Hi baby." Abby smiled, stroking his back gently. "Come on, lets get home ya?" She said, sliding out of her chair. "I'll see you tomorrow Danny." She called over her shoulder. Danny nodded, waving to Nick over her shoulder. Abby picked up her bag, still juggling Nick in her arms and slung it over her shoulder before pausing. She turned to look back at Danny. "By the way. Jenny would like to know when you are finally going to propose." She watched in satisfaction as Danny's face turned pink. "After all, Becker and Sarah are already planning their wedding, she is going to feel a little left out if she is the only one not starting a family and getting married."

Danny rolled his eyes, glancing down at the gold ring that was situated around Abby's neck. "Your 'wedding' was a bit odd though I must say. One person marriages are kinda different." He laughed. Abby smiled.

"I just decided that I might as well change my name. If we had still been together, I'm sure we would have eventually gotten married anyway. Besides, he already had a ring." She said, jingling the ring to emphasize the point. The ring was too big for her fingers and she couldn't bring herself to alter it and get it resized. It was Connors ring. Somehow it had managed to make its way into her pocket the day of the accident and had remained with her ever since. It now served as her make shift wedding band. As close as it was going to get.

She packed her bag and Nick into the back seat of her mini and pulled away from the Arc. She was halfway home when she decided to change routes, pulling off onto a side road that led to a cemetery. She found his plot easily. She had been there more times then she could remember and could probably find it with her eyes closed at this point.

She lifted Nick from his seat and together they walked out to where the small head stone sat, marking the grave of Connor Temple. It was seated only a few yards from Stephen's.

Abby stared down at the marble stone, memories coming back to her as she remembered the first day she had been here. Nick stumbled up to the headstone, tracing the words that were carved into it. "Daddy?" He asked, turning to look at her. Abby smiled.

"Yes Nick. Daddy." She whispered. Nick yawned loudly and Abby picked him up, cradling him against her chest. He burrowed his face into her neck and closed his eyes. The soft snores her made reached her ears moments later. _Poor boy, it's been a long day_. She thought.

She reached into her pocket, remembering something she had grabbed on her way out. She bent as carefully as she could while still holding Nick, and placed the small object at the foot of the head stone. A tiny dinosaur model that looked about as close to Sid or Nancy as anything she had ever seen.

She backed up again and smiled. Nick snorted into her shoulder as some of her hair tickled his nose. "Of all the thing that have gone wrong," Abby began, rubbing Nicks back gently. "With Nick, I think we defiantly did something right Connor." She whispered.

She turned slowly and walked back to the car with Nick. Behind her, she swore she could feel Connor watching her, smiling as she carried their son back to the car.

_Ya, we did didn't we Abby_.


End file.
